A young woman has to go to prison because of a hate comment, while a convicted man remains at large.
Eight of the nine men convicted of raping a 15-year-old girl do not have to go to prison. They received suspended sentences. In contrast, a young woman was sentenced to time off for insulting one of the perpetrators on WhatsApp.
The 20-year-old woman was sentenced by the district court for insulting and threatening the man, a court spokeswoman confirmed. The verdict against the convicted man is not yet final and is pending before the Federal Court of Justice.
The incident had caused nationwide outrage: In Hamburg’s Stadtpark, a heavily intoxicated 15-year-old was repeatedly raped by several men. In November of last year, eight of the perpetrators were sentenced to suspended sentences under juvenile criminal law, only one received a prison sentence of two years and nine months. The group of offenders included people of German, Syrian, Montenegrin, Kuwaiti, Afghan and Armenian nationality. Three of the suspended sentences have now become legally binding and the convicts have also been ordered to complete 60 hours of community service.
The 20-year-old had received the cell phone number of one of the men via Snapchat and then insulted him via WhatsApp. According to the “Hamburger Abendblatt” newspaper, she called him a “dishonorable rapist pig” and a “disgusting freak”, among other things. She also threatened him that he “couldn’t go anywhere” without being beaten up.
Last Tuesday, she was sentenced to recreational detention by the Hamburg-Wandsbek district court for these insults and threats. She will spend the weekend in the Hahnöfersand youth detention center. The woman, who wants to become a nurse, was already on record for petty theft. Her sentence is not yet final.
The offenders in the city park were aged between 16 and 20. The judge at the time had criticized the fact that none of the men had shown remorse, even though they had all lived in Germany long enough to recognize the injustice of their actions. Many observers considered the sentence to be too lenient, which also provoked criticism. Experts explained that prison sentences are rarely imposed for juvenile sentences, as the focus is on rehabilitation.
